"Fast car" is kind of a continuation of Bruce Springsteen's "Born to Run." It has all the clawing your way to a better life, but in this case the protagonist never makes it with her love; in fact she is dragged back down by him.
There is still an amazing amount of hope and will in the lyrics; and the lyrics themselve rank and easy five. If only music was stronger it would be one of those great radio songs that you hear once a week 20 years after it was released. The imagery is almost tear-jerking ("City lights lay out before us", "Speeds so fast felt like I was drunk"), and the idea of starting from nothing and just driving and working and denigrating yourself for a chance at being just above poverty, then losing in the end is just painful and inspiring at the same time.
So assuming that this weekend
There’s a part of me that’s thinking
Of coming up to join you, you know I sure wouldn’t want to
Ruin all your chances on your one night stand romances
Doing tequila shots, I always loved you but was never enough
And while you’re licking salt off of each other
Just know that I’ll be wishing and throwing some over my shoulder
Hoping for sores to form upon your lips
So the alcohol burns more with every sip
Are you burning now?
Dial 911 emergency to cool you down (cool you down)
So when you wake tomorrow with a hangover from hell
Don’t bother calling me, there’s no need for you to kiss and tell because
Tonight will be my night
I’m calling all my friends, the boys are going out tonight
The potion in our bottles it will be singing me to sleep
While the worm at the bottom the it's taunting me to be a creep
He says Hey man, stand up for yourself.
Hey man, I’ve got a plan for you that will work oh so well
So I picked up the payphone and I held the zero down and said
Please operator, collect call from to allentown,
but that call came back rejected but that operator was kind
Enough to talk to me and get me through the middle of the night (Yeah)
So, tonight, will be my night
I’m calling all my friends
The boys are going out… tonight.
There’s a part of me that’s thinking
Of coming up to join you, you know I sure wouldn’t want to
Ruin all your chances on your one night stand romances
Doing tequila shots, I always loved you but was never enough
And while you’re licking salt off of each other
Just know that I’ll be wishing and throwing some over my shoulder
Hoping for sores to form upon your lips
So the alcohol burns more with every sip
Are you burning now?
Dial 911 emergency to cool you down (cool you down)
So when you wake tomorrow with a hangover from hell
Don’t bother calling me, there’s no need for you to kiss and tell because
Tonight will be my night
I’m calling all my friends, the boys are going out tonight
The potion in our bottles it will be singing me to sleep
While the worm at the bottom the it's taunting me to be a creep
He says Hey man, stand up for yourself.
Hey man, I’ve got a plan for you that will work oh so well
So I picked up the payphone and I held the zero down and said
Please operator, collect call from to allentown,
but that call came back rejected but that operator was kind
Enough to talk to me and get me through the middle of the night (Yeah)
So, tonight, will be my night
I’m calling all my friends
The boys are going out… tonight.
Lyrics submitted by OMGstephanie
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Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
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Yo La Tengo
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This song was originally written by a guy called Peter Gutteridge. He was one of the founders of the "Dunedin Sound" a musical scene in the south of New Zealand in the early 80s. From there it was covered by "The Clean" one of the early bands of that scene (he had originally been a member of in it's early days, writing a couple of their best early songs). The Dunedin sound, and the Clean became popular on american college radio in the mid to late 80s. I guess Yo La Tengo heard that version.
Great version of a great song,
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“Head > Heels” is a track that aims to capture what it feels like to experience romance that exceeds expectations. Ed Sheeran dedicates his album outro to a lover who has blessed him with a unique experience that he seeks to describe through the song’s nuanced lyrics.
beautiful voice.
beautiful voice.
i love hipv. (sorry, i just wanted to say that)
people comment on this song!! analyze it! haha why has like no one? this is my favorite hipv song..its amaaazing
I think its about a guy resenting his ex...she broke up with him and he wants to talk to her but he doesnt want to because he knows itll do no good..shes with another guy, and hes jealous and sad..his friends are helping him get through it tho..thats my take, anyone else?!
i absolutely love this song. it gives me goosebumps. i think it that involves him being maybe a newly created phyisical distance ("There’s a part of me that’s thinking Of coming up to join you") from a girl that he was very close with. and i think it scares him the fact that he cant be there to keep an eye on her and make sure shes okay because she has this drinking problem, but he's always been there for her and now that he's gone thats all she does.. and even tho they loved eachother.. she runs off with other guys and he hears about it, and it breaks his heart. so he resents her for that and tries to give her a taste of her own medicine and go out with his boys, and let her feel the burn for a change. haha maybe im reading too much into it. but it kind of hits home for me.
There is another version of this song (more like a demo) floating around the internet. Slightly altered lyrics (they're more personal) and I believe it's called "2 AM and the tequila chaser" or something along the lines of that. I think the song is about someone (Rob in this situation) falling for a girl that he doesn't exactly live near (Allentown, PA) and she goes off when they aren't together and has other relationships. It's just my opinion, but thats what I think.
this song is AMAZING!!! i think its about a couple and the girl goes off for a vacation and gets drunk and maybe gets with another guy and the guy tries to call her and see how she is but the call is rejected... sad really, in my opinion the best song on the album and most sadest :( i get so sad listenin to it but i love it so i listen to it a lot lol
the singer/pianist andrew mcmahon from something corporate does the piano in this song!!! just wanted to let you guys know....
Heres how I take it. He is far away from this girl who I’m guessing he was dating or a girl who he really loved a lot. Part of him wants to go visit her wherever she is but the other part of him doesn’t want to go because he feels like he would be getting in the way of her time with other guys and all of her one night stands. She probably drinks a lot (doing tequila shots) and I’m unsure of the reason as to why she drinks. He loves this girl and his love for her wasn’t enough…she wanted something more. The part where it says “while you’re licking salt off of each other”…since there is salt in your skin… probably means when this girl and some other guy are making out or just doing what lovers do, he is wishing and throwing salt over his shoulder. Throwing salt over your shoulder is a superstition and for good luck. He hopes she gets sores on her lips…maybe from kissing so many different guys so then it will burn when she drinks. When she wakes up tomorrow with a massive hangover, he doesn’t want her to call him. Tonight he is going to go out with his guy friends to try to get her off of his mind. I think the rest of the song is pretty self explanatory as is the whole song but people asked for interpretations so here ya go.